It's a shopping mall, Enjolras
by Pseudonymperson
Summary: Enjolras, being Enjolras, is planning something, and Éponine, being Éponine, is suspicious. Modern AU.


"Win or lose, we go shopping after the election."

-Imelda Marcos

* * *

It is May inside the ABC cafe and too hot for Éponine's liking when Grantaire tells her that Enjolras is plotting something. Normally, she wouldn't be worried because this is Grantaire, and he's drunk or stoned or maybe both of them at the same time, and doesn't know what he's talking about.

On the other hand, this is Enjolras he's talking about, and Grantaire knows things about Enjolras that Éponine doesn't know and really, _really_ doesn't want to know. Plus, Eponine still hasn't forgotten the petting zoo incident. Or the airport incident.  
So, Enjolras is plotting something, and Éponine, being Éponine, is suspicious.

She goes over to the center of the room, where she sees a halo above Enjolras' head. It's really just the light reflecting off his hair, but Jehan insists that it means Enjolras is an angel, or some other symbolic crap like that. Jehan's always saying things like that- like how Courf's yellow scarf means that he's a cat, or how Marius' new tie means that he's in love. And Jehan's always wrong, because Enjolras is no more an angel than Eponine is a saint.

"We should know where we stand and we can count on. If protestors are required, they must be provided. It won't hurt to have something to fight with. Civilians always have more chance of being sent to jail when there are police in the crowd than when there are none. Let's depend on the crowd. How many of us are there? We can't leave this for tomorrow- revolutionists should always be hurried; progress has no time to lose. Don't trust the unexpected. Don't get caught unprepared. We must go over all the seams that we have made and see whether they hold fast. We should finish this today. Courfeyrac, go talk to the physics students. Feuilly, talk to the philosophy majors. Combeferre's promised to go to the cafeteria workers. There's a good crowd to have on our side. Bahorel, you'll go with him. Prouvaire, the English scholars are getting lovesick; you will bring us prose from the Poets' Club. Joly will go to Professor Lamarque's lecture, and feel the pulse of the medical school. Bossuet will take a little turn in the court and talk with the young lawyers. I will debate with the political science undergraduates myself."

"You're not punny, Enjolras," Éponine mutters, and Grantaire snickers in the back of the crowd. Enjolras hears and glares at him.  
"Grantaire, speak with the fraternities."  
"Nothing's going to happen even if I speak with them. We'll all get arrested and sent to jail for 19 years-"

"That's going to have to be a sacrifice you'll endure-"

"But I'll do it for you, Enjolras."

Grantaire was right. Enjolras was planning something.

* * *

"You're going to organize a crowd of ten thousand people to protest a shopping mall."  
"Yes, I am."  
"Enjolras, it's a _shopping mall_."  
"It's a glorified flea market filled with products made in foreign sweatshops!"

Marius sips tea in the background, raising an eyebrow when Eponine throws her hands up in defeat.

* * *

"Have you ever noticed how weird our names are? Our parents had to be on drugs or- or _something_,when they named us."  
"That would explain where you got it from."  
"Ha. You're mean, 'Ponine. I like you."  
"You're drunk, R. Go talk to Jehan."

* * *

Éponine is talking to Enjolras, and she's about to be late for her pizza deliveries.  
"You can't plan a revolution in a month, pretty boy."  
"It's statistically possible. Don't call me that."  
"Why?"  
"You sound like an old Democratic pervert who's trying to rape me."  
She chokes on her coffee. There's a single space between her next words and the way he looks at her almost playfully, but in the next instant he scowls and Éponine forgets what she was going to say.

So she leaves him with his plans and goes to deliver some pizza.  
She has better things to worry about than a rich boy with delusions of grandeur.

* * *

Éponine runs into her high school boyfriend on the way to school the next morning.  
"Hey, Ep."  
"Montparnasse."  
"I need to talk to you."  
She pushes past him, and he swears at her.  
"Come on! We used to have fun toge-"  
"Look, I have to go. I'll talk to you later."  
He drops something into her hand as she turns to go.  
"So long, 'Ponine. I'd be careful if I were you," he whispers into her ear. Éponine shudders.

_Bastard._

She keeps walking and thinks about how much she hates Montparnasse.  
When she gets to school, she realizes that she's clenching her fist, and opens it.  
Inside is a plastic bag filled with white powder.  
It isn't until she gets to her second class that she realizes that it's drugs.

* * *

At the end of the day, Éponine tries to throw the bag in the trash, but ends up giving it to Grantaire so she won't be tempted to take it back.  
She spends the afternoon getting drunk with Grantaire and falling asleep as Enjolras decides to educate them on the dangers of alcohol.

She texts him something obscene later, and Enjolras doesn't speak to her for three days. When he does talk to her, they're arguing about something stupid, and Eponine can't concentrate with Grantaire's loud proclamations that the marble man isn't as invincible as he thought he was.

* * *

Before she knows it, it's June and the day of Enjolras' protest. Cosette convinces her to go, and it turns out that nobody really wanted a shopping mall in the first place.  
It also turns out that the police _really_ don't like Enjolras, and he ends up getting arrested, along with Jehan, who keeps shouting "Honest Living!" over and over again.  
And Éponine ends up kissing Enjolras after they bail him out, when she's kind of drunk and doesn't know what to think except that it's awfully cold for June.

He jerks away from her to catcalls and applause from the rest of the group, and Éponine's wondering if she's broken Enjolras before reminding herself that she's not supposed to be sober.

"Thanks," she slurs.

His lips twitch briefly before he looks up at her again. It's not a yes or a no, but Éponine is fine with what comes next.

"You're welcome."


End file.
